If you had known Mike Birbiglia as a third-grader at St. Mary School in Shrewsbury or later on in high school, chances are that standup comedian, actor and movie director would not have been terms that immediately came to mind in predicting his future.

Certainly not from Birbiglia's perspective.

“Zero chance you would have predicted that,” Birbiglia affirmed. “I was kind of more a student government type. I read poems and would draw pictures and things like that. I don't think I was ever perceived as the class clown.” But he was “Author of the Month” while in the third grade at St. Mary's, winning for a poem he had written about bears and Thanksgiving.

While a student at Georgetown University, however, he won “Funniest Person on Campus” and the chance to perform at the D.C. Improv. “They were so impressed they hired me to bus tables,” Birbiglia jokes. But the tables had turned.

Birbiglia's turning fortunes in 2012 have included the successful indie release of his first film, “Sleepwalk With Me,” which he co-wrote, directed and starred in with a cast that had notables such as Lauren Ambrose and Carol Kane. In the more than partly autobiographical movie that comes out on DVD Dec. 18, he plays Matt Pandamiglio, an aspiring standup comedian with girlfriend and sleep disorder issues. In real life, Birbiglia, who grew up in Shrewsbury and on Cape Cod, is married to Jen Stein (who was associate producer for “Sleepwalk With Me”), and has rapid eye movement behavior disorder, which has led to some nightmarish sleepwalking misadventures.

Looking ahead, Birbiglia, 34, has a date at The Hanover Theatre for the Performing Arts in Worcester on Feb. 8, when he will bring his one-man show “My Girlfriend's Boyfriend” about romantic blunders and miscues to town.

Birbiglia did the Boston-Cambridge comedy club circuit when he was younger, but “I've actually never done shows in Worcester,” he said during a recent telephone interview from his home in New York City. “I'm really excited about it.” While in the Worcester/Shrewsbury area, he'll be able to catch up with family and friends, and may even run into school classmates who would, correctly, assert that Birbiglia was never the class clown.

So what did happen? How did he go from author/poet of the month to the star of three Comedy Central specials, three comedy albums, and a frequent guest on shows such as “The Late Show with David Letterman?” (Additionally, he is the author of a book, and has acted in several movies.)

“I just got the bug for writing comedy in high school,” he explained. The bug developed while he was watching “Saturday Night Live,” Letterman, Conan O'Brien, et al, on television. Then he aspired to a career goal — “I'm gonna be a writer for Conan O'Brien.” Birbiglia ended up doing that one better by appearing on “Late Night with Conan O'Brien.”

Meanwhile, from performing improv and standup, Birbiglia began to devise a routine based on a theme/story. “It's something that evolved when I was in college at Georgetown,” he said. As a student he had taken playwriting and screenplay-writing classes. His professor suggested that he combine his standup comedy skills and creative writing abilities to craft a one-act play or show.

The subsequent evolution of “Sleepwalk with Me” from stage to screen was not undertaken with Birbiglia's eyes closed. He knew he was taking a risk directing the film as well as co-writing it and assuming the lead role.

“At first I wanted someone else to direct it.” But he said Jeff Garlin, a comedian and a producer of Larry David's riotously funny HBO comedy series “Curb Your Enthusiasm,” had warned him that bringing in more voices “can really water it down.”

Taking the directorial helm, “I found myself making every mistake. It was very much trial and error,” Birbiglia acknowledged.

The crew he was in charge of had been involved with many more films than he had. “You have to be very focused and steadfast and strong. And be collaborative, but maintain your own aesthetic.”

As for the film's autobiographical elements, Birbiglia said, “I would say it's 80 percent true, although when you add actors it ultimately becomes out of your hands.” The way Carol Kane portrayed his mother, for example. “This isn't exactly what happened.”

Nevertheless, his parents, who now live on Cape Cod, saw the film and “loved it,” Birbiglia said. “They responded to it better than anything I've ever done professionally.”

There were some initial concerns about how many people would have the opportunity to respond to “Sleepwalk With Me.” It opened last summer in just 30 movie theaters. “We were very disappointed,” Birbiglia said. Taking to outlets such as Facebook and Twitter, fans were asked to request that the film come to their local cinema. “It was very grass roots. It was a film we really believed in.” Eventually, “Sleepwalk With Me” was at 350 theaters nationwide during the course of a 13-week run, including in Worcester. “It ended up being one of the top 10 or so indie films (of the year), which is exciting,” Birbiglia said.

The romantic ups and downs of “My Girlfriend's Boyfriend” are also autobiographical to some degree — and also destined for the big screen.

“I'm in the process of adapting that into a film. I hope to shoot that in 2013,” Birbiglia said.

Any more personal stories up his sleeves?

“Ultimately I want to get away from autobiography in my career,” he replied. That said, “It's been a great launching point.”

•

Mike Birbiglia's “My Girlfriend's Boyfriend” will be performed at 7:30 p.m. Feb. 8 at The Hanover Theatre for the Performing Arts, 2 Southbridge St., Worcester. Tickets are $28 and $38. Limited “VIP” seats (two for $150.40) are available, including both a pre-show and post-show to benefit the 15-40 Connection. For more information, call (877) 571-7469 or visit www.thehanovertheatre.org.

CDL A DELIVERY DRIVERS Home Every Night! Needed for our Worcester Depot! Drive local - No more spending valuable nights away from your family! As a Direct Store Delivery Representative YOU have the opportunity to make a difference with our customers! Provide excellent customer service; interact in a positive manner with our customers; deliver our products to local stores. Be home every night! Work for a Company that has been around for over 80 years! Minimum of 3 months driving experience with CDL A/B; GED or HS diploma required; Must be able to drive a standard transmission. EEO/Veteran/Disability Growing Strong Since1933!